Are they really that liberal and progressive? How the complexity of Gen Z challenges market understanding

Understanding Generation Z has not only been one of the main objects of study for researchers and behaviourists in recent years, but also a true obsession for brands. It is justifiable; they want, at all costs, to get into the minds of these new consumers to think about developing products and services that are more aligned with this group's expectations.

Generation Z, the sociological definition for people born between 1997 and 2012, and sometimes also nicknamed ‘centennials’, is the first generational group considered digitally native. With a large part of its members now over 18 years old, this generation has been impacting society more consistently in several aspects, while becoming economically active.

The entry of the so-called ‘Gen Z’ into the job market, for example, illustrates how some of the expected disruptions have actually happened – even generating major challenges for companies. The ‘People Management Trends’ report released by Great Place to Work in 2024 shows that 68.1% of managers say they have difficulty dealing with Gen Z and their expectations in the corporate world. To give you an idea, Millennials, the generation that precedes Centennials, cause much less friction in the job market: only 6.2% of those interviewed report challenges in dealing with this generation.

This more challenging and impermanent behaviour was to be expected. As this generation was born digital, with constant access to the internet and social networks, more dynamic behaviour was expected, seeking agility and expressing non-conformity with the pre-established models in force in society. These characteristics are, in fact, striking traits of Gen Z. But the generalisations stop there.

Gen Z were raised in homes with more liberal parents than those of previous generations, with more access to information and more contact with diverse lifestyles. Because of this, people expected this group of people would be more tolerant and progressive. However, the reality is much more complex than expected.

While previous generations seemed more homogeneous in their behaviours and opinions, Gen Z, right away, shows itself to be full of nuances – this is considerably evident when we break it down by gender.

The Ipsos Pride survey on LGBTQIAPN+, released in June 2024, assessed the perceptions of populations in 26 countries on issues of diversity and inclusion. When analysing the responses of young people, we observed some important points. In most Latin American countries, for example, people from Generation Z are more comfortable declaring themselves as LGBT+, compared to the general averages of the populations of their countries.

Gen Z's support for marriage equality, adoption of children by LGBT+ couples, and against discrimination against members of this community is also higher than the general averages for their respective countries.

These numbers make perfect sense when we consider that equity, diversity and inclusion are important topics for members of this generational group.

However, this more open view presents a considerable gap when we break down the opinions of women and men of Generation Z. While women are increasingly progressive in their opinions, compared to their predecessor generations, Gen Z men not only do not follow this trend, but in some contexts, they have become as or more conservative than men of previous generations.

The Ipsos Global Trends 2024 survey also provided some interesting insights into greater conservatism in the views of male respondents from this generation.

It is worth noting that this gender divide is not a phenomenon exclusive to Brazil or Latin America. According to a survey conducted by the Financial Times, in the United States, women under 30 are 25% more progressive than men in the same age group. In Germany and the UK, this difference is even greater: Gen Z women vote 30% more than men for progressive parties.

Another survey, also carried out in the United States by Change Research, in 2023, shows that 41% of young women, under 30, identified themselves as progressive, compared to 24% of men.

It is worth noting that, in general, Generation Z continues to be the segment of the population most engaged in activism for climate causes, gender identity issues and sexual freedom.

However, especially among young men, this generation has a nostalgic tendency. According to the Ipsos Global Trends survey, 62% of men in this age group say that they ‘would like things in their country to be like they were in the past’, compared to 50% of women in the same generation. The nostalgia of Gen Z is also greater than that of Millennial men (55%).

Another question in the same survey, ‘if I could choose, I would live in the time when my parents were children’, shows 57% agreement among men in Generation Z. Among women in the generation, only 46% agree.

Some points, however, need to be contextualised in order to try to find answers to this phenomenon.

Generation Z was impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic in a different way than other generations. Four years ago, many of them were at the height of their school years and had to deal with social isolation at a time when socialisation was an important tool for their development and entry into adulthood. Obviously, men and women were equally impacted, but the way men react to emotional pressures generally tends to be more restrained due to social standards that demand masculine strength in the face of adversity.

In addition, this is a Generation that has high levels of anxiety, depression, dissatisfaction, and insecurity. In his book ‘Generation Z: Technology and Social Interest’, American psychologist Antony Turner delves into the impacts on the psychosocial development of this generation due to the fact that they grew up in the midst of the great economic recession that began in 2008. For Turner, the unstable scenario created a generation that has difficulty dealing with problems and getting in touch with their own emotions, and that, while they are more open to new things, they are less attached to their own convictions, thus being less open to accepting dissenting points of view.

In his book Of Boys and Men, British journalist and historian Richard Reeves analyses the challenges that Generation Z men face in contemporary society. Reeves argues that today's young people in general struggle to find purpose and meaning in a world characterised by weakening social connections, lack of professional ambition, widespread feelings of loneliness and uncertainty about the future.

According to the historian, this disorientation hits young men from Generation Z the hardest, as they end up seeking answers to some of their concerns in more conservative models from a past that they themselves did not experience. Women, on the other hand, are still committed to fighting for greater equality in societies that, despite advances, still disadvantage them greatly; for this reason, they tend to look to the future rather than the past.

In fact, this same advance in the gender equality agenda is another point that may justify this male concern with the present. With companies giving more visibility to the issue, and women increasingly gaining leadership positions in the job market, young men are faced with a scenario in which the male figure is losing its isolated protagonism – which can generate insecurities and fuel the idealisation that the situation was better ‘before’, because it was more favorable to them.

A discussion that goes far beyond the issue of gender

Although this is a relevant illustration of the complexity of Gen Z, it would be simplistic to say that it boils down to this. Even within the male segment of Gen Z, different tribes coexist, with very divergent behaviours and opinions – a result of the ‘Age of Algorithms’ that has led to the emergence of countless niches.

Social media, especially TikTok and Instagram – the preferred platforms of Generation Z – play a crucial role in the fragmentation of behaviours and perceptions within this generational group. In these media, the algorithm is designed to create silos, the famous ‘bubbles’, which makes it increasingly difficult for individuals with diverse and distinct views to have conversations, even among people of the same age group, since groups are ‘formed’ through segmentations based on the search profile of users. And, because Generation Z was born within this digital environment, it is impacted and niched in a much more intense way than its predecessor generations.

This lack of homogeneity, or rather, this plurality of profiles within Generation Z, poses a huge challenge for brands. It is no longer possible to think of strategies that speak to an entire generation. To create closer and more lasting bonds, a more granular segmentation needs to be considered.

And, in societies that are still as polarised as those we live in in almost every nation in the world, this is just another layer of complexity in understanding people's behaviour.

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• Basic rights denied: Brazilians' concerns as a reflection of society
• The people of Brazil: A new approach to understanding context, homes and the new Brazilian family
• Are they really that liberal and progressive? How the complexity of Gen Z challenges market understanding
• Corporate reputation: ESG, polycrisis and polarisation
• A new work model: the role of employees and purpose in organisations
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